It was like stepping into his favorite daydream, the one from the old days at Skyland Recreation Center in northeast Denver.

Standing at the top of the key, with the game on the line in the waning seconds of overtime, Chauncey Billups swished the tying three-pointer against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Jan. 19, then lifted the Detroit Pistons to victory in the second extra period.

The big news for Billups was that . . . it wasn't big news.

The 30-year-old Denver native, one of the most feared late-game performers in the NBA, has made one clutch shot after another since signing with the Pistons as a free agent in summer 2002.

Three-pointers, runners, banks, free throws - Billups' crunch-time repertoire has earned him the nickname "Mr. Big Shot" and a place among the NBA's top clutch shooters.

It's a short list that includes Steve Nash, Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade and Carmelo Anthony, who will lead the Nuggets against the Pistons tonight at the Pepsi Center.

What makes a money player?

Fearlessness, high basketball IQ, a touch of ruthlessness. All the traits embodied by Michael Jordan, Larry Bird and Jerry West - the best clutch shooters in NBA history. Not to mention Reggie Miller, Robert Horry, Sam Jones, Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, all of whom eagerly seized the moment, as Billups did against Minnesota, while others blinked.

"I just always feel like I'm going to make the shot," said Billups, who made his first notable buzzer beater as a George Washington High School sophomore.

"I never worry about who's guarding me or who's in front of me, I just worry about getting the shot off, being squared up, and I don't put pressure on myself and think about if I'm going to miss it or make it.

"I just think like it's the first quarter. I don't feel any different about it. I just shoot it the same way."

As a University of Colorado sophomore, Billups sank an 8-footer with less than a second to play to sink No. 20 Texas Tech, one of his many big plays that season.

After the Boston Celtics drafted Billups with the third overall pick, he hadn't even finished training camp when it dawned on him that then- Celtics coach Rick Pitino had lost faith in him.

While bouncing around the NBA for several seasons, a virtual vagabond, his reputation as a clutch shooter gradually eroded, partly because he was overshadowed by teammates such as Kevin Garnett, Antonio Mc- Dyess and Antoine Walker.

That changed in Detroit during the 2002-03 season, when Billups scored eight consecutive overtime points in a victory against Cleveland, then a three-pointer with 3.9 seconds left to set up another overtime win against the Cavaliers two days later.

"It's something you really can't teach," Billups said. "Either you've

really got it or you don't. Some people have it, but they're not in position to take those shots, like me earlier in my career. Other people just don't have it in them to take those shots."

Billups entered a new realm that breakthrough 2002-03 season with the Pistons, when he led the league for most game-tying/lead-changing field goals in the last two minutes of the fourth quarter or overtime.

Rick Carlisle, then the Pistons coach, nicknamed Billups Mr. Big Shot, as his newly minted star began to resemble Billups' favorite clutch player.

"Reggie Miller - because it seemed like he never, ever missed," Billups said.

"And I know he did, but when I was watching, he didn't miss. Playing against him or watching, he didn't miss."

The big shots were only starting for Billups, who helped lead the Pistons to the Eastern Conference finals in each of his first four seasons and to the NBA championship in 2004, when he was named the Finals Most Valuable Player.

"He loves to have the ball. He wants to be the guy that takes the shot. Either win it or lose it," Pistons coach Flip Saunders said before the 2006 Eastern Conference finals against Miami.

Added Heat coach Pat Riley: "He gives me hives."

Billups, who averages 17.6 points and 7.5 assists for the Eastern Conference-leading Pistons, can strike at any time.

After missing eight games because of a calf injury in late December and January, he scored 51 points in two games, including a clutch three against the Timberwolves.

That didn't surprise his Park Hill buddies.

"When I was in little league," Billups said, "I used to hit big shots all the time."

They said it

"When people searched through the rubble after the Battle of Gettysburg, they found more rifles that hadn't been fired than rifles that had been fired. The same applies in basketball. Some people just can't pull the trigger in crucial situations."

Dick Motta, former Mavericks coach

"This game is all confidence and, you know, sometimes it's scary. When I'm at my best, I can do just about anything I want and no one can stop me. I feel like I'm in total control of everything."

Larry Bird, Celtics legend

"It's funny. When I see all the things that are written about great clutch players in the playoffs, whether it be Jordan, Bird, Magic or myself, if you notice at the end of the game, we were always passing to guys to make shots. When you compete against young players, you see them take a lot of bad shots late in games because they want to be 'clutch.' "

Isiah Thomas, former Pistons great

"That play was 'give the ball to Michael and everyone else get the heck out of the way.' "

Doug Collins, Bulls coach, after Michael Jordan hit a winning shot in the 1989 playoffs

A closer look at the NBA's big shots

Who are the best clutch shooters, past and present? What traits define them? Staff writer Clay Latimer, who covered the Nuggets and the NBA for several years, gives his assessment:

All-time clutch team

• Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, center

Comment: His sky hook was as beautiful as it was lethal.

He said it: "The greatest shot in the history of this game was Abdul-Jabbar's (sky hook). It was unstoppable." - Jerry West

• Larry Bird, forward

Comment: Took 300 practice shots before each game.

He said it: "Look in his eyes and you see a killer." - Dominique Wilkins

• Reggie Miller, forward

Comment: Totally fearless.

He said it: "It's innate. You either have it or you don't." - Miller

• Michael Jordan, guard Comment: Could do everything as time ticked down - routinely.

He said it: "There's Michael Jordan, and then there's the rest of us." - Magic Johnson

• Jerry West, guard

Comment: One of the best pure shooters in NBA history; he had the cool to match.

He said it: "He'd shoot from the sideline and just run off the court to the locker room because he knew the shot was good." - Jack McMahon, former 76ers coach

• Robert Horry, sixth man Comment: Average during season, "Big Shot Bob'' in playoffs.

He said it: "If I hit it, we win, if I miss, y'all are going to blame the stars for losing the game anyway." - Horry, after sinking a game-winning buzzer beater in the playoffs

A new generation of clutch shooters

A sampling of current NBA standouts, in addition to Horry, who have shown they can shine with the game on the line:

• Kobe Bryant, Lakers: The crunch-time heir to Jordan.

• Dirk Nowitzki, Mavericks: A 7-footer with a deadly perimeter shot.

• Dwyane Wade, Heat: Grew up a Jordan fan, now he's emulating him.

• Steve Nash, Suns: His versatility is a weapon in its own right.

• Carmelo Anthony, Nuggets: Five buzzer beaters a year ago; plus, he's the go-to man for the U.S. national team.

• Chauncey Billups, Pistons: Denver native is a money man when the stakes are the highest.

• Ray Allen, SuperSonics: In a recent team poll, the Mavericks voted him as the clutch shooter they fear the most.

• Michael Redd, Bucks: A prime-time player whose performance improves at crunch time.

• Gilbert Arenas, Wizards: A work in progress; his remarkable skills eventually could make him an end-game nightmare for opponents.

• Manu Ginobili, Spurs: With his breakneck style, he thrives when everything is on the line.

What it takes

Some key attributes of a clutch shooter:

• Fearlessness: Courage is a must-have. The Pacers' Reggie Miller missed every shot against the Pistons in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference final, then hit the winning three-pointer in the closing seconds.

• Giving it up: Sometimes, passing up a shot is as crucial as shooting. The Bulls cemented a three-peat in 1993 when Michael Jordan slipped the ball to John Paxson with 5.3 seconds remaining in Game 6 of the NBA Finals. With the Bulls down 98-96, Paxson's three-pointer doomed the Suns.

• Versatility: Must be a good dribbler to start a final play at midcourt. Has to be able to create his own shot. Should be virtually automatic on the three-point line. Helps to be strong enough to drive and draw the foul.

• Feeling the rush: Facing long odds, clutch players go into maximum overdrive. In the 1995 playoffs, Reggie Miller scored eight points in a span of 8.9 seconds to rally the Pacers from a six-point deficit in the final 16.4 seconds.

Air of despair

Michael Jordan victimized plenty of teams with his clutch shots, but none more than the Cavaliers and Jazz:

• Game 5, 1989 opening round: Double-pumps a 15-footer over Cleveland's Craig Ehlo to win the series.

• Game 4, 1993 conference final: Jordan's fadeaway jumper does in Cleveland.

• Game 1, 1997 NBA Finals: Gives the Jazz a taste of things to come with a buzzer beater.

• Game 6, 1998 Finals: Nails a 20-footer with 5.2 seconds left against Utah to give the Bulls their sixth title in eight years.

Reggie rubs it in

Reggie Miller loved to taunt his victims, often bowing to all four sides of a visiting arena after a winning shot. "I love being the villain," the former Pacers forward said. "You've got to remember the NBA is the entertainment business, like Billy Joel or Michael Jackson."

• The drama: Bombs the Knicks for 25 fourth-quarter points in Game 5 of the 1994 conference final. Closing act: Cusses out Spike Lee, a die-hard Knicks fan.

• The drama: Scores eight points in the last 8.9 seconds to beat the Knicks in Game 1 of the 1995 playoffs, Closing act: Shouts "Choke artists! Choke artists!" as he runs down the tunnel to the Pacers' locker room.

• The drama: Hits a three-pointer with seven-tenths of a second left in Game 4 of the 1998 playoffs to beat the Bulls.

Closing act: Turns into a human helicopter, spinning five times before teammates mob him.

latimerc@RockyMountainNews.com

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